Female WWE stars’ body language changed when Vince McMahon was mentioned, veteran says (Exclusive)
Vince McMahon was WWE’s creative figurehead for four decades before stepping aside amid misconduct allegations. Dutch Mantell, formerly known as Zeb Colter in WWE, recently recalled what he observed backstage when he worked for the company.
In January, former WWE employee Janel Grant accused McMahon of sexual assault and trafficking between 2019 and 2022. He denied the allegations before resigning as a board member of WWE’s parent company TKO “out of respect.”
Mantell worked for WWE in 1995 and 1996 before returning for another three-year run between 2013 and 2016. On Sportskeeda Wrestling’s Smack Talk, he told host Sid Pullar III that female wrestlers’ behavior changed when McMahon’s name was mentioned:
“Sometimes the discussion would get around to Vince, and you could look at them, their whole body language would change,” Mantell said. “They would sit up and then they would become very serious, and finally, you remember Summer Rae? Well, she never said anything bad about him, but she was one of them that I kinda got that vibe from. She’s never said anything about it, but I could tell that he had done some bad intentions with those girls.” [10:03 – 10:46]
In the video above, Mantell gave his opinion on whether Vince McMahon and the villainous Mr. McMahon character were the same person.
Dutch Mantell addresses Vince McMahon allegations
Since January, Vince McMahon has not had any role in WWE. Nick Khan serves as President, while Triple H is the company’s Chief Content Officer.
In Dutch Mantell’s opinion, fans and wrestlers should take Janel Grant’s claims against the 79-year-old seriously:
“A lot of people said, ‘Ah, no, he wasn’t like that. He couldn’t have been. He’s running a business.’ Well, you think differently about this when the person involved is your sister or your wife or your daughter. If you put it on a personal level, it changes, because you want your family and your wife and your daughter and sister to be treated with respect, and I don’t know if Vince was doing that.” [10:50 – 11:22]
Mantell also discussed one thing he refused to do in the wrestling business outside of WWE.
What are your thoughts on Vince McMahon? Hit the discuss button and let us know.
Dutch Mantell and his wife Cathy have battled life-threatening health issues in recent months. You can show your support by leaving a donation via GoFundMe.
Please credit Sportskeeda Wrestling’s Smack Talk and embed the video if you use quotes from this article.
Source: Sportskeeda
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